Buffy
the Vampire Slayer: Lover’s Walk
[Dark Horse
Comics $2.99 US $4.50 CAN]
Written by Various & Illustrated by
VariousClick Here For A Sample Page

This
one-shot anthology shipped on Valentine’s Day so it’s no wonder the issue
showcases a few of Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s favorite couples.

The
first story, “One Small Promise” was written by Tom Fassbender and Jim
Pascoe and features Buffy and Riley as they have a small lover’s spat and,
of course, dust some vamps. Cliff Richards (pencils) and P. Craig Russell
(inks) handle the art chores in this story quite ably. Cliff Richards has long
been one of my favorite Buffy illustrators because of his ability to
capture the likenesses of the actors with a few simple lines. P. Craig Russell
is a brilliant penciler in his own right and his inking meshes perfectly with
Richard’s relaxed and realistic style.

Jamie
S. Rich and Chynna Clugston-Major (Blue Monday) supply the story in
“Punish Me With Kisses.” In it, Willow and Tara, Sunnydale’s two cutest
witches, travel to a bed and breakfast in Northern California to pick a very
special snow flower for their spell-casting. In true Scooby fashion the hotel
ends up being haunted by a lascivious female ghost who’s driving away the
male customers.

This
tale ended up being my favorite of the issue in large part due to Chynna
Clugston-Major’s wonderfully wacky manga-inspired art. It fit the
light-hearted tone of the story perfectly and made me want to see a Willow and
Tara animated series.

The
final story is entitled “Who Made Who?” and follows Spike and Dru as Spike
comes to terms with the fact that he and Dru do not have a healthy, normal
relationship. Christopher Golden, regular Spike and Dru specials
scribe, pens a violent but amusing tale about Spike exacting his revenge on
Dru in Rio de Janeiro.

Eric
Powell (pencils) and Keith Barnett (inks) supply the artwork. Eric Powell
illustrated the BTVS: Giles one-shot and the BTVS: Spike and Dru
All’s Fair special. His work in the Giles one-shot was quite
detailed and spooky, particularly the tentacled horrors that Giles had to
defeat. The Spike and Dru stories, however, have been less impressive.
The panels are dull and lack the dynamic feeling necessary to create a proper
mood for the story and engage the reader. I’d like to see some of the same
attention to detail in these stories, which could go a long way toward making
them seem less flat.

You
should be able to find this issue on your local store’s shelves. But if you
have no luck there, you can also order direct from Dark Horse Comics, Inc.
10956 SE Main Street, Milwaukie, OR 97222 or visit their web site at www.darkhorse.com.